Aerial Signal Strength

He would need to go up onto the roof with an antenna on a pole as though he was fitting it and to measure not only signal strength but quality as well. For example, if there are a lot of reflections (ghosting) on your analogue picture, you may not be able to get an usable DVB-T signal - it is a combination of signal strength and quality that is important. A good installer should have a suitable test instrument.

High gain aerials increase signal strength and may also improve reflection issues. Generally what your neighbours have should be a clue.

Another option would be to get an old Sky receiver, a dish and a free to air card (if you don't want to give Rupert any money). That is likely to be more successful.

Did you use the menu on the Freeview box to scan for stations? You may be on a different transmitter to the one your freind is using.

IME, Freeview gets a picture even when you have a crap signal so I am suprised you dont get anything.

| After tolerating a poor signal for a few years - which became = intolerable=20 | when Channel 5 started, I signed up to cable TV. Reception problems = over and=20 | more channels as well. |=20 | I am now hoping to save some money - and tried someone's Freeview Set = top=20 | box. All I got was a blue screen message saying no signal - so clearly = it is=20 | bad. Previous attempts to improve the signal got me a 12 foot mast - = which=20 | looked so hideous as was badly fitted that I had it taken down - and = the=20 | installer had to pay for repairs to my brickwork which he had shattered= with=20 | a Hilti Gun. | A later attempt got me a mast head amplifier - better, but then along = came=20 | NTL. |=20 | My roof is virtually a pyramid shape so height is a problem. |=20 | Question - will a decent installer be able to measure the signal = strength=20 | before fitting anything? I don't want to get more hardware fitted if it= =20 | isn't going to get me a Freeview signal. Nearby homes have high gain = aerials=20 | and presumably Freeview - but they have gable ends or chimneys. I am at= the=20 | bottom of a hill.

Have you considered waiting till Freesat is up and running sometime next year? Only BBC, ITV programs plus a lot of minor things are up and running ATM Ch4 and Ch5 are still encrypted by $ky :-(

See sig for details.

--=20 Dave Fawthrop Sat Ch4, Ch5, only GBP20

What will I receive "=A320 ... one Viewing Card". You will also need=20 $ky box and dish. List of Channels at

I think you have something there - I realise I am aimed at Waltham - the owner of the Freeview Box is aimed at Sutton Coldfield - She didn't bring the remote control so we were a bit limited as to what we could do. I guess it is a menu driven thing.

John

Yeah it is a menu thing. Consider getting a box from Argos, play with it, because you can always take it back.

"Freesat" is up and running in that all the BBC (1,2,3,4, CBBC, CBeebies News24) and ITV (1,2,3,4,Men and Motors) channels are now Free to Air (FTA)

However Ch4 and Ch5 will probably be encrypted Free To View (FTV) for several more years yet (2008 has been mentioned) as they have long contracts with Sky, but you can still get ch4 and five (and Sky Three) without a monthly subscription with a Sky box and a FTV card, Sky are offering Sky box, Dish, installation and a FTV card for 150 pounds which you might find turns out cheaper than a massive aerial installation and freeview box see

Unfortunately for some reason Channel 4 are not interested in making E4 and More 4 FTV on Satellite (neither are ABC1, ftn, UK TV, Sky Sports News ....)

oh no you can't, Argos have thought of this freeview boxes are excluded

"This item is excluded from the 16 day money back guarantee. See the Additional Information panel for full details. Please note that this product is excluded from our 16-Day Money Back Guarantee. This does not affect your statutory rights."

Ask in uk.tech.digital-tv where you will find knowledgeable and helpful people like Bill Wright

Thanks to the group - I obtained the remote and went through the set up menu - it worked fine - no picture problems at all. I now need to call NTL and cancel my cable TV. However, I want to still get their Broadband (for now...!)

Any recommendations on Set Top Boxes? What should I look out for? Is there much to chose between them?

Thanks

Stingy Argos!!

They are all much the same, go for one you like the look of! I think most have a 7 day TV guide which allows you to select stuff to record. I have a Sony one, one niggle is that the first time you switch over to channel 19 it wont display anything - chose another channel, then back to 19 and its fine!

"john" wrote in news:A_gqf.7017$ snipped-for-privacy@newsfe4-gui.ntli.net:

Look for 2 scarts out so you can record and watch something different.

They all have coax loop through, a very few have a modulator so you can run a TV without a scart off them - a few people might require this.

There are other considerations like sensitivity to impulsive interference, which I haven't been able to quantify wxcept the Goodmans GDB4 doesnt have it :-((

mike

Yes Chris that is very correct, you "can't" take a box back if there is nothing actually wrong with it. So you (TINY) have to be a bit creative when taking the unit back say there is something wrong with it, the person on the tills (usually) hasn't got the skills to test for "broken" electronics and they certainly won't have any equipment so they will take you (TINY) at your word and give you (TINY) a refund, they may offer to swap the box but you (TINY) can just say you have no faith anymore in that manufacturer or Argos (something at the back of my mind tells me that you (TINY) decide if you want the item replaced or a refund). Have a story ready (you (TINY) could get a signal with a friends) in case they want some background .

By a decent STB on ebay - sony is as good as it gets, and you can always sell it for very little loss of cash.

Try it and see.

Ghosting and multipath is one thing that is much less of a problem on digital than analogue, but very low signal means not just a noisy picture - it means NO picture at all. I am not sure if there is antything to be gained with bossters - I have te feeling that quality STB';s are prerty sensitive already.

OTOH hefting a big multielement up high will always win over a smaller one lower down.

SONY. works like a charm, and has the best menu systems . Expect to pay 60 quid on ebay tho :-(

Agreed.

I totally disagree here.

At our location, we are in a bit of a dip from a good clear view of the Winter Hill TV mast. TV reception had been getting worse for several years, so I decided to get a new aerial installed.

Aerial rigger came and measured the signal strength and advised us that a good quality, high gain one would give us digital signal strength. He mentioned some trees that he had said that he had avoided the aerial from looking through. At first, everything was fine, until autumn came along. The trees got the leaves wet and out went digital TV.

Due to the good aerial, analogue TV was still watchable.

So, a poor signal will not give you digital TV.

Dave

Doesn't statutory rights include that it is fit for use then? Low signal strength at the OP location would infer that it is not fit for use.

Dave

Nope, having a low signal strength has NOTHING to do with the "box" [c.f. tyres may be capable of a gazzilion miles an hour but fitting those tyres does not make your engine powerfull enough to power the car at a gazzilion miles an hour], it should never have been bought in the first place.

That could be a tricky one in the sense that the product purchased would be the receiver only.

If the receiver is actually functional with a signal that the spec of the receiver and/or broadcaster gives but this is not achievable because of the location or antenna, it is not the manufacturer's or the supplier's fault - the product was still fit for purpose.

Following that argument would suggest that if I bought a gas cooker but didn't have a gas supply to which to connect it, then the cooker is not fit for purpose.

However......

Having said all of that, I would still return it and simply say it doesn't work.

If you return goods within 6 months, the onus is on the supplier to prove that the product worked. However, they can offer a replacement or repair rather than a refund.